seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Job 4:12 “A word was secretly brought to me,
my ears caught a whisper of it.
13 Amid disquieting dreams in the night,
when deep sleep falls on people,
14 fear and trembling seized me
and made all my bones shake.
15 A spirit glided past my face,
and the hair on my body stood on end.
16 It stopped,
but I could not tell what it was.
A form stood before my eyes,
and I heard a hushed voice:
17 ‘Can a mortal be more righteous than God?
Can even a strong man be more pure than his Maker?
18 If God places no trust in his servants,
if he charges his angels with error,
19 how much more those who live in houses of clay,
whose foundations are in the dust,
who are crushed more readily than a moth!
20 Between dawn and dusk they are broken to pieces;
unnoticed, they perish forever.
21 Are not the cords of their tent pulled up,
so that they die without wisdom?’
The easy English site was super preachy this morning..... so I chose the enduringword.com commentary for these verses. It's still preachy but not as bad.A word was secretly brought to me: Eliphaz claimed that he received this word in a dream, when deep sleep falls on men, and he received it by a spirit that passed before his face in his dream.
“Eliphaz bolstered the authority of his words by an appeal to the supernatural – an eerie and hair-raising experience in which he received a divine oracle.” (Smick)
A spirit passed before my face: The words in the following section came to Eliphaz from this strange and mysterious spirit.
“Whether it came from heaven or hell, we know not, for its communication shows and rankles a wound, without providing a cure.” (Clarke)
Can a mortal be more righteous than God: Eliphaz called attention to the common sinfulness of man. The idea is clear: “Job, we all sin. There is no great shame in admitting that you have sinned and that is why this calamity has come upon you.”
If He charges His angels with error, how much more those who dwell in houses of clay: Eliphaz made this interesting comment to point out man’s spiritual and moral frailty. He noted that even angels had fallen into error, therefore it should surprise no one that man – including Job – has also fallen into error.
This statement hit closer to the real truth than Eliphaz could know. It was one of these angels charged with error – Satan himself – who was the real cause of Job’s calamity. Satan also led a large number of angelic beings into rebellion against God (Revelation 12:4, 12:9). The Bible also says that in the age to come, redeemed man will in some way judge these fallen angels (1 Corinthians 6:3). Eliphaz was correct on this point: He charges His angels with error.
“It is all very beautiful, but absolutely short-sighted. Eliphaz had no knowledge of those secret councils in heaven, and was making the mistake of attempting to press all things into the compass of his philosophy.” (Morgan)
“The speaker seems serenely unconscious that he was saying anything that could drive a knife into the tortured man. He is so carried along on the waves of his own eloquence, and so absorbed in the stringing together the elements of an artistic whole, that he forgets the very sorrows which he came to comfort.” (Maclaren)
My dad had a saying..... "I don't care who did what.... just fix it." He also said.... "Don't hand me excuses.... just fix it." I think this guy just got tired of sitting there listening to Job go on and on and on about how sad he was. A week is a long time..... it took a week to bury McCain. It took a week to bury Billy Graham. A week of sorrow may be appropriate..... This guy was just saying.... come on..... get up..... get on with it.... "accept your mistake and get on with it".Job was hanging tight.... something was not right.... all these bad things.... all or a sudden..... Job had covered all the sins with his extra offerings..... remember... Job threw an extra oxen on the alter to cover the sins of his drunken kids. Now this Eliphaz guy is saying "even the angels make mistakes".
I can just hear him now.... "Job, even the angels make mistakes.... and let's face it, Job..... you might be a good man.... but you are no angel"
